Lucille Ball Research Paper

Everyone Loves Lucille Ball
Some famous Americans have won the noble peace prize, while others might be known for creating world peace or world catastrophes. Lucille Ball will forever be remembered as the person who entertained people with “rubber faced antics (“Lucille Ball Biography”) “zany impersinations.” These comments may seem demeaning; however, they glorifiy Lucille Ball’s legacy. An actress, comedian, a producer, Lucille Ball is most famous for producing and acting in her most famous sitcom, I Love Lucy. Arguably one of the most influential female comedians of all time, Lucille Ball started small in the world of show business, worked her way to the top, and created a world-renowned sitcom that portrayed new ideas and reinvented the

Her father, Henry Durell Ball was a line man for the Bell telephone company. Unfortunately, Henry died in 1915 from typhoid fever, a mere four years after she was born (“Lucille Ball Biography”). Desiree Hunt Ball, known to her family as DeDe, moved Lucille and her brother Fred into her parent’s house. With the encouragement of her grandparents and DeDe, Lucille discovered her love of acting, and participated in many school plays. Her mother was such a great influence on her career, that DeDe’s laugh was recorded and included on every I Love Lucy soundtrack. Without the encouragement Lucy received at home, she might have never pursued her career as an

People all over the world soon knew the name Lucy Ricardo, and the show was translated into Spanish, Japanese, Italian, and Portuguese so viewers across the globe could understand (Hanson). Due to the non-existence of DVR’s, stores and restaurants closed when I Love Lucy was on, putting up signs that said “We love Lucy, too. See you after the show.” According to Vince Waldron, author of Classic Sitcoms, “‘Quite simply the show was better written, preformed, and photographed better than anything the audience had ever seen. Even today-more than 4 decades after the series ended its run-few situation comedies can match the look, presentation and pacing of I Love Lucy, televisions first classic sitcom’ (“Ball, Lucille”).” The show was the first to have over 10 million views and 54 million people tuned in to view the birth of Little Ricky, which was more people than those who watched Eisenhower’s inauguration. Because the show portrayed a family, it was very relatable and